Discord
Changelog
Forum Moderation
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There are some guidelines I want to clarify for the forum here, to help avoid confusion or more work for the moderators and staff than is needed.
As everyone can find by simply browsing almost any online forum, comments on news articles, and Facebook especially, it quickly becomes apparent that negativity breeds quickly on the internet. For NWN, it turns PW forums like this from being a place to share information and gather together with other like-minded individuals, to a place where problems with a person, feature, potential bug, or the PW as a whole are hung out for everyone to see. Even worse, transforming it to a place where people say things they would never think of saying to another person face-to-face.
Because of the negativity that persists on most internet forums, and because some people, when anonymous, enjoy fostering disagreement/discord on them rather than using them as a place for constructive conversations, I practice what I consider No-Negative Forum Moderation. By that I mean, whenever there are threads or posts that appear to be turning negative, that they already have more of a negative connotation than positive, or that they may cause more hard feelings or problems than they solve, they are removed from the public view on this forum.
Example posts and threads that may be removed include, but are not limited to, some of the following:
1. I died. Again. This sucks.
If you have a problem with the death system, with how you died, or you just need to vent, contact a DM. And if you think your death was caused by a bug, for Myrkul’s sake, post it in the Problem Reports forum.
2. This [part of the] PW sucks. Why does anyone play here?
If you dislike the PW as a whole, you are free to leave at any time. If you want to continue playing but would like to see something(s) changed, contact a DM.
3. The player/staff member/DM named Balanor (or whoever) sucks.
Attacks on any individual are not tolerated. Not only will these posts be removed, but they can result in a ban from the forums or PW as well. If you have a problem with someone, see the Feedback post, two posts above this one.
4. This sucks/You suck/Life sucks. I’m leaving.
Again, players are free to come and go at any time. You don’t need to announce it. If you want to say goodbye to someone(s), send them a PM or let them know in-game. The vast majority of the time these posts turn into a variation of examples 1-3, which is why this made the moderation list as well. Temporary absence posts are ‘OK’, so long as they do not drift too closely to one of the Dreaded 3 examples.
Finally, if you're retiring or deleting a character and want to make its departure public knowledge, do it ICly in the Character Background forum.
5. My post called Regarding Forum Moderation (or whatever) was removed. Why?
To be blunt; the administration of these forums and the Thay PW are not run by committee. We have all seen, time and again, the internet turn decent people into assholes. Because of that and the reasons stated initially, some of these public opportunities/debates that can encourage that transformation are limited here for the sake of all the volunteers (both staff and players) who choose to make the best of their gaming time in Thay.
If a thread or post of yours was removed, you may receive a PM about it and the reason why from someone on staff. If not, and you are wondering about it, reach out to a DM to ask about its status.
In closing, I do realize that what is considered positive or negative is very subjective, but I try to follow common sense when determining if something is removed from public view or not, encourage the staff members here to do the same, and now ask all of you reading this to use your own common sense when posting here. I do take player and staff comments very seriously and will act on them, if I feel it is appropriate or necessary for the PW. But since this place is run and frequented by volunteers, some of who have given immense amounts of their time and effort to provide a PW option for you to play, this is where I draw the line as to what these volunteers deal with on the public forums.
----------------------
There are some guidelines I want to clarify for the forum here, to help avoid confusion or more work for the moderators and staff than is needed.
As everyone can find by simply browsing almost any online forum, comments on news articles, and Facebook especially, it quickly becomes apparent that negativity breeds quickly on the internet. For NWN, it turns PW forums like this from being a place to share information and gather together with other like-minded individuals, to a place where problems with a person, feature, potential bug, or the PW as a whole are hung out for everyone to see. Even worse, transforming it to a place where people say things they would never think of saying to another person face-to-face.
Because of the negativity that persists on most internet forums, and because some people, when anonymous, enjoy fostering disagreement/discord on them rather than using them as a place for constructive conversations, I practice what I consider No-Negative Forum Moderation. By that I mean, whenever there are threads or posts that appear to be turning negative, that they already have more of a negative connotation than positive, or that they may cause more hard feelings or problems than they solve, they are removed from the public view on this forum.
Example posts and threads that may be removed include, but are not limited to, some of the following:
1. I died. Again. This sucks.
If you have a problem with the death system, with how you died, or you just need to vent, contact a DM. And if you think your death was caused by a bug, for Myrkul’s sake, post it in the Problem Reports forum.
2. This [part of the] PW sucks. Why does anyone play here?
If you dislike the PW as a whole, you are free to leave at any time. If you want to continue playing but would like to see something(s) changed, contact a DM.
3. The player/staff member/DM named Balanor (or whoever) sucks.
Attacks on any individual are not tolerated. Not only will these posts be removed, but they can result in a ban from the forums or PW as well. If you have a problem with someone, see the Feedback post, two posts above this one.
4. This sucks/You suck/Life sucks. I’m leaving.
Again, players are free to come and go at any time. You don’t need to announce it. If you want to say goodbye to someone(s), send them a PM or let them know in-game. The vast majority of the time these posts turn into a variation of examples 1-3, which is why this made the moderation list as well. Temporary absence posts are ‘OK’, so long as they do not drift too closely to one of the Dreaded 3 examples.
Finally, if you're retiring or deleting a character and want to make its departure public knowledge, do it ICly in the Character Background forum.
5. My post called Regarding Forum Moderation (or whatever) was removed. Why?
To be blunt; the administration of these forums and the Thay PW are not run by committee. We have all seen, time and again, the internet turn decent people into assholes. Because of that and the reasons stated initially, some of these public opportunities/debates that can encourage that transformation are limited here for the sake of all the volunteers (both staff and players) who choose to make the best of their gaming time in Thay.
If a thread or post of yours was removed, you may receive a PM about it and the reason why from someone on staff. If not, and you are wondering about it, reach out to a DM to ask about its status.
In closing, I do realize that what is considered positive or negative is very subjective, but I try to follow common sense when determining if something is removed from public view or not, encourage the staff members here to do the same, and now ask all of you reading this to use your own common sense when posting here. I do take player and staff comments very seriously and will act on them, if I feel it is appropriate or necessary for the PW. But since this place is run and frequented by volunteers, some of who have given immense amounts of their time and effort to provide a PW option for you to play, this is where I draw the line as to what these volunteers deal with on the public forums.